Perspectives |
Corresponding author: Jaeson Clayborn ( jclay010@fiu.edu ) Academic editor: Marie-Caroline Lefort
© 2019 Jaeson Clayborn, Alban Delamarre.
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Citation:
Clayborn J, Delamarre A (2019) Living room conservation: a virtual way to engage participants in insect conservation. Rethinking Ecology 4: 31-43. https://doi.org/10.3897/rethinkingecology.4.32763
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Through interactive gaming, virtual reality applied to butterfly and forest conservation activities can reach a broad audience and initiate a paradigm shift towards coexistence between humans and butterflies under urban settings. Butterfly World 1.0 is a serious game designed to teach players about butterflies and plants in dry forest ecosystems in the Florida Keys (USA). Tasks include butterfly and plant identification and the removal of an invasive ant species. The immersive virtual environment allows players to explore the forest without swarms of mosquitoes and oppressive heat present in the real environment. Rethinking a different way of communicating butterfly conservation and environmental stewardship through gaming, we can reach many who might otherwise remain untouched by traditional education routes. Virtual gaming, designed to educate the player through meaningful tasks and measurable outcomes, presents another avenue for direct knowledge acquisition and passive empathy through direct experiences.
Butterflies, experiential learning, Lepidoptera, serious game, virtual reality
The Anthropocene epoch will bring unprecedented change to Earth’s biodiversity (
Earth’s natural systems are complex and difficult to fully explain, especially if they conflict with economic growth and development (
VR users, rather than being passive learners, can make decisions in the virtual environment and observe impacts from their choices on the environment, on their own livelihoods, and on future generations (
Tropical dry forests are globally imperiled ecosystems that have diminished due to residential and agricultural development (
Many butterflies have experienced significant population reductions (
In the United States and Caribbean, people have intentionally attracted wildlife into their yards and communities by increasing plant diversity, reducing pesticide use, and posting signage to inform passersby (
Changing the behavior of human individuals is difficult and requires effort and dedication on the part of the educator(s) (
VR simulations can have a transformative effect on human behavior (
Butterfly World 1.0 is an adventure game designed to engage the participant in simulated research and education (Fig.
Players can:
1) Distinguish subtle features that differentiate butterfly species;
2) Identify butterfly host plants and other plants in the dry forest based on physical characteristics;
3) Mitigate the impacts of invasive species and trash; and
4) Recognize organisms in the game in their own community.
As an explorer, the player ventures throughout the tropical dry forest and searches for butterfly species, with clues embedded in the forest. For example, the likelihood of coming across a specific butterfly species increases when the player locates their host plant(s). The player searches for different butterfly species, snaps a photo, and correctly identifies the butterfly before the photo is processed and transformed into a badge. Six badges are required to complete explorer mode. Three of the six badges must include photos of the Schaus’ swallowtail (Heraclides aristodemus ponceanus), Bahamian swallowtail (Heraclides andraemon), and giant swallowtail (Heraclides cresphontes) butterflies. The player also encounters exotic (one invasive) animal species. The invasive ant species eats the butterflies faster than native predators; therefore, the player is encouraged to remove them; otherwise, the number of butterflies will decrease, making it difficult to collect enough badges.
The game is implemented using Unity 3D, a software specialized for the design of 3D application and games. Butterfly World 1.0 is composed of three main components:
The environment
The first version of the game represented a subtropical dry forest in the Florida Keys (Fig.
The entities
Butterfly World 1.0 is inhabited by various butterflies, with most species native, such as the federally endangered Schaus’ swallowtail (Fig.
The 3D models of the butterflies were designed using Blender, an open source software to model and animate 3D objects. Like the tree designs, photos of pinned butterflies were used to make the butterflies appear realistic. After butterfly models were created, a script was written to animate the virtual butterflies, giving them flight behaviors based on our observations in butterfly gardens and dry forests in Key Largo. Animated butterflies search for and rest on host plants, refuel by landing on flowers (Fig.
An additional entity added to the first version was the graceful twig ant (Pseudomyrmex gracilis; Fig.
Butterfly World 1.0 is an interactive virtual reality game depicting a subtropical dry forest in the Florida Keys (USA). Participants explore their surroundings and identify butterflies, plants, and exotic (some invasive) species. Their mission is to capture photos of six butterfly species including the federally endangered Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly (Heraclides aristodemus ponceanus) and remove as many invasive species as possible. A The graceful twig ant (Pseudomyrmex gracilis) is an invasive ant species that inhabits dry forests in the Florida Keys B cassius blue butterflies (Leptotes cassius) flying around in the virtual forest C magnifying glass used to zoom in on the butterfly wings for proper identification D cassius blue butterflies nectaring on their caterpillar host plant (Plumbago auriculata; exotic, ornamental plant, common in yards) E participant using the virtual reality headset with hand controllers F the lime swallowtail (Papilio demoleus) is an invasive butterfly species in the Caribbean; however, it has not reached south Florida G the federally endangered Schaus’ swallowtail (H. a. ponceanus) is endemic to the Florida Keys; and H the giant swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) is a common butterfly that inhabits dry forests and urban areas, it closely resembles the Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly; however, their wing color patterns are different.
The tools
The dry forest environment contains tools for the player. These tools help the player complete each task and finish the mission:
– Net thrower: The net thrower makes catching butterflies easier to take their photos and earn badges. The net thrower is also used to extract invasive species (e.g., graceful twig ant).
– Magnifying glass: The magnifying glass is used to observe butterflies and plants and correctly identify them based on their unique markings (Fig.
– Camera: The player uses the camera to photograph the butterfly and answer another question before earning the badge.
Butterfly World 1.0 also contains mini-games for player enjoyment. Each mini-game is based on existing facts aimed at expanding players’ content knowledge and awareness:
– Trash pick-up contest: The player picks up as much trash as possible before the sun sets;
– Spider just dance: The player mimics the mating dance of a spider or gets eaten; and
– Butterfly race: The player flies to the proper host plant before the competing butterflies reach it, while avoiding obstacles, traps, and predators.
By playing Butterfly World 1.0, players learn about the relationships between butterflies, forest plants, and exotic species through immersive, measurable tasks with a defined mission (Figs
A comprehensive, longitudinal study is necessary to quantify players’ dispositions and gained knowledge over time through assessments, surveys, and interviews (
Immersion in a virtual dry forest encountering butterfly and associated plant species and completing exploratory and educational assignments designed to be fun and interactive can potentially lead to real-world knowledge acquisition and action such as the creation of home and school butterfly gardens and active participation in citizen science. A The federally endangered Schaus’ swallowtail butterfly (Heraclides aristodemus ponceanus) is a charismatic, flagship species in the Florida Keys (USA) B researchers often look for Schaus’ swallowtail caterpillars and adults by locating their caterpillar host plant (Amyris elemifera); however, the public is less likely to encounter this butterfly considering the hostile terrain and conditions including swarms of mosquitoes C the dry forest (in the Florida Keys) is hot, humid, and rich D the ruddy daggerwing (Marpesia petreus) inhabits dry forests and adds to the biodiversity in the virtual dry forest world E magnifying glass used in the game to help identify butterfly and plant species F participant explores the dry forest terrain without the heat, humidity, and swarms of mosquitoes. Organisms that visit butterfly gardens in south Florida (USA): G large orange sulphur (Phoebis agarithe) H syrphid fly (Palpada albifrons) I atala butterfly (Eumaeus atala) J tree snails (Bulimulidae) K gray hairstreak (Strymon melinus), and L spiders (unidentified species). Home and school butterfly gardens can be a sanctuary for wildlife in urban areas: M butterfly garden with high plant diversity planted at Coral Terrace Elementary School (Miami-Dade County, USA).
VR brings ecosystems to the living room or classroom. The New Zealand Virtual Reality (NZ-VR) project (https://www.nzgeo.com/vr/), supported by New Zealand Geographic, uses 360° videos to exhibit New Zealand’s marine biodiversity with the intent to change people’s relationship with the environment. However, as of today, the application does not allow for interaction with the environment and users only remain observers. Serious gaming is another avenue to engage audiences through fun, competitive, interactive simulations representing real world scenarios and tasks (
There are some potential drawbacks to VR use considering nature and wildlife exploration and education: the lesson plan has less flexibility than actual experiences in nature, and things may go wrong with the software and hardware. VR is also costly, making it perhaps unavailable to students in underfunded schools. But these disadvantages are outweighed by the many potential advantages of this approach: generating interest (curiosity), enriching students’ engagement, having fun while learning, and utilizing exceptional images, diagrams, and animations difficult to showcase at home or in the classroom.
Playing Butterfly World 1.0, we predict that players will learn by doing, as the game is truly an active-learning engagement, connecting them through personal experience. This is an underutilized strategy towards developing empathy in humans for other living things, reawakening biophilia (
VR gaming with an educational and conservation approach has many potential benefits, but it is not without its constraints and limitations. If players become frustrated by the game, then their frustration will inhibit fun and consequently learning. The physical sensations of touch and smell in nature are also absent. In our game, the hand controller vibrates when players touch plants with resins that cause rashes in real life; however, the feel of smooth and rough surfaces, hot and cold air, or wet and dry objects is absent. Many plants have scents in real life, but players are unable to smell objects in the virtual world.
VR gaming requires expensive equipment: (1) computer with a graphics card powerful enough to avoid lagging, as a less powerful graphics card would generate lagging and create cybersickness thus negatively impacting the gaming experience; and (2) VR headset. Equipment costs might prevent access to some people; therefore, we will also create a desktop version of Butterfly World 1.0, which will be accessible online; however, game play and enthusiasm are potentially compromised without full immersion in the virtual world.
Butterfly World 1.0 is accessible online at http://ocelot.aul.fiu.edu/~adela177/ButterflyWorld/. This is a prototype and will be enhanced based on teachers’, gamers’, and scientists’ insights and suggestions. Remarks can be sent to butterfly.world1.0@gmail.com.
We thank the referees and Suzanne Koptur for constructive feedback that improved the manuscript. This is contribution #365 to the FIU series of Tropical Biology.